Tag Archive | Andrew Gold

Armed with only his acoustic guitar and a soaring vocal range, singer/songwriter Blake Morgan celebrated the July 30th release of his latest CD, Diamonds in the Dark, with an engaging set played to a packed house at Manhattan’s Cutting Room.

While the unplugged set was missing the lusher aspects of Diamonds in the Dark’s expanded instrumentation, Morgan’s delivery and on stage charisma did each song full justice. This CD is really fantastic! Morgan’s adept guitar playing fondly recalls that of the late great George Harrison, while his voice varies between comparison to the adult contemporary mellowness of hit-maker Duncan Sheik and top-shelf Seventies pop greats such as Andrew Gold. And what’s not to like about that?

Morgan draws his subject matter from his past romantic relationships, and while the songs are obviously deeply personal, he keeps the message universal and accessible. Tuesday’s set featured nine cuts from the just-released Diamonds, including a few of my favorites like the opening number, “Haunt Me,”“Best Bad Idea” and “I Can Hear You Say.” I enjoyed Blake’s humorous between-song banter (where he revealed many of the details behind each song) and it was a fun evening for all! Diamonds in the Dark is available now wherever fine music is procured, and you can find out more about Blake by visiting This Link. See the set list below!

Cutting Room Set List

Haunt Me
Black Into Blue
Suspicious Bliss
Water Water Everywhere
Best Bad Idea
Don’t Want To Let You Go
I Can Hear You Say
We Left Off
So Scared And Happy

Singer-songwriter Andrew Gold, the writer of the 1977 hit “Lonely Boy” and a frequent collaborator of Linda Ronstadt’s, died in his sleep at his Encino, Calif., home on June 3, the Los Angeles Times reports. The 59-year-old had been battling cancer.

Gold seemed destined to find a career in music, thanks to the accomplishments of his family. His mother, Marni Nixon, sang for Natalie Wood in West Side Story and for Audrey Hepburn in My Fair Lady, while his father, Ernest Gold, won an Oscar for his score of the 1960 film Exodus.

Taking up multiple instruments on Ronstadt’sHeart Like a Wheel, Prisoner in Disguise and Hasten Down the Wind, Gold added a charm and robustness to the famous singer’s records. “Andrew was so enormously talented it almost seemed effortless,” Ronstadt told the Los Angeles Times. “He was a real cornerstone of those early records … He was so bubbly and so smart and we were so impressed with what a good musician he was.”

Gold worked as a session musician for James Taylor, Carly Simon and Loudon Wainwright III. His impressive resume also includes the theme song to NBC’s Mad About You and his hits “Lonely Boy” and “Thank You for Being a Friend,” the latter of which was used as the Golden Girls theme.

Gold is survived by his wife, Leslie Kogan, his mother, two sisters and three daughters.